Speakers, are you using these 6 common ‘hiding’ tactics?

Perhaps that’s the origin of the lectern and why so many speakers stay tucked behind it. Speakers, those clever beings, have found many things behind which to hide. Lecterns are the least of them.

Here are six things you might be hiding behind when you speak:

1. Certainty: In “Without a doubt,” Seth Godin says: “Certainty is a form of hiding. It is a way of drowning out our fear, but it’s also a surefire way to fail to see what’s really happening around us.”

Are you being too sure of yourself or your facts when you speak? It is, among other things, a highly effective way of shutting down audience contributions. Is that what you’re trying to do?

2. The length of your talk: Speakers who use every second of the time allotted for their own remarks are hiding behind the clock, often as a way to avoid taking questions from the audience or to defy the organizer, chair or moderator.

If you hide this way, know that the choice is obvious (and annoying) to audiences and limits your ability to grow as a speaker. Balancing the allotted time between your talk and the audience’s time to speak is a better approach.